March 13, 2011 by Tonya Bertke-Younk, South Riding, VA Terri was able to take my old ugly duckling resume and turn me into a white swan. As I read the words on the resume I found myself saying: is this really me. She was involved, caring, supportive always offering advice and a true professional. I look forward to my future now and know that the opportunities are endless.I will share her services with everyone I meet and for sure I will use her again. Thank you Terri for all you do for all of us. Tonya Bertke-Younk
March 8, 2011 by April Raines, Herndon, VA Terri was very patient and helpful. She took the time to learn about me and my background to provide a thorough overview of my experience. I would recommend her to anyone looking to spice up their resume.
Did you know that Q1, as in Quarter 1, as in the months of Jan-Mar are one of the best times of the year to find a job in the private sector? For government positions, this would range between Oct-Dec and Jan-Mar. In the private sector, January marks the beginning of a new budget year. Companies have projected, in the prior year, how much money they can spend this year and included in that figure are headcount and salaries for new positions. In the government, the same holds true for the Oct-Dec season. I believe one can find a job all year long due to attrition, people leaving positions and a vacancy being created, or an unscheduled immediate need for a new position but newly created positions are in abundance at the commencement of a new budget year. So if you are out there seeking employment, put fuel in your tank and pedal to the metal and use this time to put all of your energy into going out there and grabbing a new position.
So I have been pretty “lucky” in finding very good jobs no matter what type of market existed and despite the odds. Not only have I found good jobs, I have found GREAT positions that have always been in direct proportion to my “Career Continuity”. What is “Career Continuity”? It is finding jobs which contribute to the continuation of your career. Many of us may find our niche in the job market and work at a position we really enjoy but then find ourselves in a successive position that has nothing to do with what we thought we should be doing, is very different at our last job, and it is in inverse proportion to our skillset. We find a hiccup in the plans we have set for our careers. Instead of climbing UP the ladder, we find that we are walking a straight and lateral path or are on an opposite path which has nothing to do with the path from which we came. Instead of having a “career”, many of us just have a “job” – a means to pay the bills-if that. We have always settled for this and in this economy, many have become complacent and plain ole grateful just to have a job and do not try for anything better. Well, for people like me….I LIKE people like that! I love those who believe the grim news that there are no jobs or that employees should stay where they are and not try to look for another position. It just creates more room in the job market for us aggressive job-seekers and job takers! I am a career opportunist and believe that whether it is a job-seeker’s or hiring manager’s market, I can definitely crack the market – and I usually do! How do I do it? Check out the To-Do List for Locking Down that Job Offer!
1) Know the product which is YOU; know your selling points; know what to say to make someone want to “buy” you. If you can’t communicate who you are what you do, why would a hiring manager pay for your skills? I suggest “branding” yourself. See my website for more details on how to accomplish this: www.MyPlanToSucceed.com.
2) Show enthusiasm for what you can do and what you can offer.
3) Find out what the challenges are for the position you are interviewing for WHILE you are in the interview. At the end of the interview, when asked, “Do you have any more questions?”, NEVER say NO! This shows no interest. A great question to ask is: “What challenges are you looking to overcome by hiring someone for this position and what are the skills you are seeking to accomplish this? ” WHATTA question! Trust me, it works everytime and hiring managers LOVE this as you are making them qualify why they need you and it is then up to you to answer in a way which proves WHY they need you! I have tons of great answers for this question and they have always worked. In a nutshell, qualify your skills with great examples of how your skillset will directly solve their problems, once you have identified what they are. Remember, they are seeking to fill a position because they need help to solve a problem and are looking for a “problem-solver”.
4) WIIFM. What’s In It For Me? Though we all like to believe that companies care about our growth, our career paths, our abilities to pay our bills, our means to take care of our families, our continuing education….let’s think about this. Companies look for the BEST candidates, the most complete candidates, the most well-done candidates that will offer them the biggest ROI (that’s Return on Investment, for you non-Finance folks). They care about the “inner” you but only as it pertains to how productive you will be in your performance of the tasks they set before you. Why do you think that if you are hired as an Accountant, tuition reimbursement will not pay for a degree in Basket Weaving?
5) Keep your eyes glued to this space. More great tips to come.
Jean Evans of Winchester, VA on August 23, 2010
“Wow! Is the one word that describes Terri’s writing ability. I wrote my own resume and undersold myself. Terri, however is a true professional who assessed my skills and artfully described my creditials. I know I look like the professional I want on paper as well as in person. My confidence has grown to pursue better career options. I can’t thank Terri enough. She is a blessing and my angel! I shared my resume with my sister and neighbor, who are in HR, and they stated I shouldn’t have any problems gettting a position the way my resume is written. They stated that’s you! Often times we undersell ourselves, but it truly takes someone with people s and writing skills to make you shine. I now feel more confident to select my career path instead of hunting for a job! Terri’s fee is affordable and I happily made my payment without any hesitation. The the best fee I’ve ever spent.”
June 16, 2010 – J. Long, Woodbridge,VA. Planning for Success did a wonderful job updating my resume. I would highly recommend them. They really helped me improve my resume so that it was not only recognized but stood above others in today’s job market. Terri took a great deal of time and consideration in working with me to get my resume the way that I wanted it. She was very professional and cares a great deal for her clients. Planning for Success does not just churn out resumes for the masses. Instead, they help customize each resume until it is its own work of art.
Awesome Job! I found Terri online by chance and after reading her reviews, I thought why not give her a try? I am so glad I did! She took my dull, old resume and created a wonderful masterpiece. I don’t think I could have achieved such results on my own. I would highly recommend her services. Thanks again Terri!
January 18, 2010 by Sarah P in Reston, VA
Worked like a charm and was oohhh so beautiful!!!!
“I found Terri online with a list of resume writers in N. VA. On a hunch , I called her and asked to retained her services. When we met and she showed my husband and I the resume, cover and thank you letters, I was blown away. My resume is quite extensive and she took what I had and gave it a facelift. I recognized the resume but not the person. I was renewed! I submitted the resume the next day and got a call from a HR department two days later. I had submitted my resume to the same HR dept. several times for similiar postions with no call backs. I also got an Interview. That’s progress. RECOMMENDED TO EVERYONE!!”
Pa’Trice Owens of Locust Grove, VA on October 11, 2009
“Terri wrote an outstanding resume, cover letter and thank you letter for me . I used this for 2 positions I was applying for in the medical field. Not only was I offered one job but I was offered both jobs! Her writing skills a incredible!”
From: Donna Breeyear of Alexandria, VA on September 06, 2009
It’s all in your approach. I am no fan of job fairs. To me, they are wastes of time, but that is bad of me to discourage you when my job is to ENCOURGE! Many of us do not know what to say when we have an interview/appointment for which we have had time to study. Can you imagine ‘being on your feet’ in a NOISY and CROWDED room full of strangers and hiring managers who did NOT send us a personal invitation (i.e., they have not seen our resume and have no idea who we are)? This makes our job so much harder and uncomfortable. We have to sell this complex product (ourselves), to a stranger who has probably already been overwhelmed with all of the, “Hi! I am ….blah, blah, blah.” So just how does one elicit the interest of oneself to a stranger in 30 seconds or less? I’m “gonna” tell ya!
Step 1
YOU’VE GOT GAME!
You already know these hiring managers are only participating because “it is the right thing to do”. The corporation will probably get some big tax write-off or something. No one voluntarily WANTS a line of strangers rushing up to them in an unorganized manner to listen to them (most of you) babble about their past work experiences. So how do you differentiate yourself from the last 25 people who had no “Game”? You’ve gotta HOOK ’EM! You must snap these hiring managers out of their robotic stances and responses and come correct with your own personalized game plan. You want to make them believe you already had interest in them before you got there. You want to make them believe that you have already browsed their corporate websites for jobs, even if you hadn’t. You also DO NOT want to tell them who you are and what your experience is BEFORE you find out from them what types of jobs they have to offer and what skills they seek. This way, you will not “X” yourself out. You don’t want to tell them you are about X, Y, and Z when they are looking for A,B and C. You want them to tell you FIRST that they are about A,B and C and then you want to make them believe that you TOO are about A, B and C as WELL AS your own X,Y, and Z and whatever else they might be looking for!
So a line such as this should suffice: “Hi, I am name here. I browsed some of your open positions earlier in the week. Can you tell me in what areas of the company do open positions exist and what are some of the skills you are looking for?” You see…..it’s about S-T-R-A-T-E-G-Y and now….”YOU’VE GOT GAME!” You see….you’ve flipped it. Now, you have them talking about their company so YOU can decide if you want them instead of you standing there blah, blah, blah-ing about yourself when they may be half-listening because they have been listening to blah, blah, blah-ing all day.
Step 2
Once you have their attention and you’ve got ‘em talking, tell them you have applied via their website previously but you recently had your resume revamped to more clearly highlight your strengths and abilities and then SHOVE that copy in their faces!
Step 3
Get the name of the person you handed your resume to. When you get home and submit your resume on their website (and I strongly urge you to), when it asks where did you hear about the position, BE SURE to say from an internal employee and put down the person’s name that you spoke to at the job fair. Insert their name into your online profile so every time you apply for a position at this company, that name, which is a goldmine, can be referenced as a referral.
Would this be you? I am all for education. I believe education makes one well-rounded, increases ones credentials, and in some (not all) cases, increases ones opportunities in the job market. If you are reading this, you should know that I produce resumes for individuals from all ends of the occupational spectrum. I have also worked in the corporate environment for over 20 years.
I have worked amongst extremely qualified, driven and bright high-school graduates with amazing experience to mediocre and complacent college and post-college graduates. I have also worked with high school graduates with no ambition who obtained their educational training the “free-way” in public school, to college educated individuals who have obviously learned how to make it work for them by using their many years of expensive and paid for education.
This leads me to draw certain conclusions. Don’t be fooled by an “MBA”, “PhD”, “BA”, “BS” (no pun intended on this one) title.
In my resume writing profession, I have encountered many who have amazing credentials: Bachelors in Business Administration with a Masters in Finance or a Masters in Computer Science, for example. Yet, these people are in low-level positions. Not low-level for someone who has a HS diploma or even an Associates with several years of experience. I mean low-level for someone who paid so much for “school training” but are doing nothing to get their education to “pay their way through life”. There are many students out there who are being misinformed, who have not yet attained any hands-on experience (i.e., those who went straight from HS to college to grad school but have not yet worked) who have been told that the more degrees they obtain, the more money they will make. This is somewhat true but not absolute. This is true for those who know how to make the right connections, network and know how to self-market themselves and negotiate their way to an entry-level position that is moving fast up the ladder. This is NOT true for those who obtain all of their fancy education and go out and stand in the middle of the work world and expect the dream, high-paying job to fall into their lap while exhibiting a mediocre personality, mediocre drive, and below average communications skills.
I have also worked with people who have completed HS or college, with a few years of hands-on work experience under their belt who have decided to go back to school because they felt as if they could not get ahead and were stuck in a dead-end job. Now again, allow me to reiterate, I am NOT against anyone furthering their educational goals. But people….do it for the right reasons. If you are a HS graduate making $35,000 as an Accountant and you have had your job for several years and believe that once you complete your degree in Accounting and go and hand it to Human Resources, who will then increase your salary by $10,000, you are sadly mistaken.
My occupation by trade is in the Information Technology and Finance field. I don’t have an MBA or a Masters in Computer Science but believe me, that I have made a S*load more money than many that have worked alongside me with the fancier credentials but did NOT know how to TALK and sell themselves into a better position.
What we need to focus on is soft skills. Listening, talking, and communicating. Your fancy graduate degree may get you notice on “paper” and may grant you the interview invitation, but while you are interviewing or are gearing up for that promotion in an already established job and you don’t know how to “A-R-T-I-C-U-L-A-T-E” or communicate the needs of the organization or how your skills can contribute to the organization, “fuhgedaboudit” , as we say in my treasured home-state of the N-Y-C. You can bet Bob, the High Schooler, with the C average, years of experience, a great talker, motivator, “out-of-the-box” thinker is coming to take all you’ve worked so hard for and believed to be yours.
Let me also clarify: If you are one of the workers that just sits in the back and develops masterpieces and complex algorithms for your organization, that degree with no communications skills on your part, may just make it. But if you are in a high visibility position and in a position to discuss ideas, elaborate on the business, communicate to senior management and yet, you have no personality or do not know how to TALK, “fuhgedaboudit!”
The following FREE Resume and “Can’t Find a Job?” seminar will be given by Planning For Success, LLC:
5/19/2009: Ashburn Library, 43316 Hay Rd, Ashburn, VA 20147 from 6-7 PM.
Please RSVP at www.MyPlanToSucceed.com on the Contact Us page.
Customer recommendation for Planning For Success from the Merchant Circle site:
May 03, 2009 by R.HOLTE in Gainesville, VA
Great experience. Terri was very timely and great to work with. I will use her services in the future.
Wendell Williams, Winchester, VA:
“I was looking for a cheap economic way of getting my resume update and giving a complete make over. Then I run into Terry Berry’s ad online in the directory. I called Terry and the rest is history. >From the first phone call to the finish product. She showed experience, class, knowledge , and the ability to ask and listen to me about what I was looking for and what I wanted. She made my resume from average to way above average marks. Her ability to take what ever your career is or your past experience and present it in your resume is second to none. Every sentence will make the reader smile and crave to keep on reading your resume to find out more about your experience and career. I will urge anyone considering upgrading thier resume or trying to create one to consider Planning for Sucess for their resume source. Her price is very reasonable and affordable, and the finish product is an absolute art work of resume writing. Please consider using Planning for Success. I would ”
March 26, 2009 by Chelsea M. in Ashburn, VA: Someone else to do your dirty work!
As if looking for a job isn’t difficult enough! I loved being able to meet face to face with Terri to discuss and review my resume. The final product was wonderful, and I got the hard copy. A very affordable but decidedly not cheap resource to assist you overcoming the first (and sometimes the hardest) obstacle in job hunting. Writing your own resume can be like cutting your own hair!
As I have provided resume writing services to job-seekers over the last 10 years, it is purely amazing what I have seen! I grew up in the NYC public school system which undoubtedly is not and was not in the TOP 10 list of America’s Number One public school systems. I can attest to the fact that grammar was definitely taught in my school by a set of pretty sharp individuals. Therefore, I have no idea where some of the currently brightest and highest-paid individuals went to school whose crappy resumes have come across my desk. Now this is no fault of theirs. Most of us find resume updating as something that “has” to be done because we either got fired, laid off, or hate our boss and need to get away…FAST. For many, preparing a resume is comparable to that William Shakespeare essay we had to write in high school on “Midsummer Night’s Dream”. In other words, it is a TASK…a DRAG. We wait until the last minute and then just spew out anything. So, as many of you have done in high school (or college), you go and contract this service out to a professional. That is where I come in. Me…. The Professional. The Resume-Writing Professional ! Did I flunk English 101 in college? Sure did! But they say the 2nd time around is the charm and I took it from a “D” to an “A” – or maybe that was the third time. (Hey, I was a MATH major!) In any case, this Math major has now become a writer and has dedicated my time to those of you who wish to contract out this service of resume writing. So what is it that I do you may ask? Most importantly, you may ask WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) if I pay you? Well, I am about to tell you.
Are you one of the three types below?
1) A High-Achiever with great communications skills, great career goals and experience (over 10 year’s worth) and a go-getter. You are focused and driven and reach out for opportunity but you don’t like your job and can’t seem to get out of it.
2) A Middle-of-the-Road Achiever who may have attended college or not. You work hard but you get nowhere in your career. You try hard but not hard enough. You beat yourself up and stop to wonder why you find yourself “stuck” in this occupational demise. You make the first move and try for something better but to no avail. You find yourself in an undesirable position and you do not like your job.
3) A Low-Achiever. This level comes in two forms. The Slouch: Someone with sub-par communications skills. Someone who has a job mainly because you need to eat. If you have a job, you may have had the same job that you now hate for some time. You are probably quite adept at your job because it is easy. You work as opposed to having a career. You call in sick on days that you are well and go to work on days you are sick and produce nothing. You blow all of your money on the lottery hoping your ship will soon come in. The world owes you something but you won’t reach for it. You will just wait for it. Then there’s the Ambitious Low-Achiever. Someone with bashful vocals. They are articulate but rarely speak up. This is the guy at the meeting who only speaks up when the loudest guy in the room speaks up and their voice is so non-commanding that it just gets drowned out by the loudest guy in the room. They accept not being heard. This individual may have a good job, is good at it but just sits there and complains that he hates his job. This person would like something new and may work towards it but they are not knocking down any doors to get to it.
(Wow…we have so much to say about the Low Achiever, don’t we?).
What do these three characters have in common? They are all unhappy with their jobs. We can see that the High and Middle Achievers have at least tried to make a change. The Low Achiever (the slouch)….well, he’s probably asked around to friends about “giving” him a job so he is trying also.
The Ambitious Low-Achiever, well, he has made attempts at branching out but has done a little here – a little there. He doesn’t put much effort into anything.
What’s the problem here? On the assumption that all of the above are pretty adept at their jobs, would like a change and have more than likely submitted their resume at one time or another for a better job, none can find a way out of their current situations.
PERHAPS IT’S THEIR RESUME!
Stay tuned for more. To Be Continued…… Next Up: Self-Marketing and Branding 101
**Keep your eyes peeled on this space for examples displaying the “wrongs” and the “rights” of job-seeking as it pertains to resume writing along with “Good” vs. “Bad” sentence structure and phrasing in the world of resume writing.
